Share with Email

Thank you for sharing!

New Jersey Superior Court Judge John Russo Jr., whose judicial career has been marked with ethics charges and battles with superiors, now faces a sexual harassment suit by his former law clerk.

Valisha Desir claims the harassment took place after she became Russo’s law clerk in Ocean County Superior Court in January 2017. The suit was filed by Neil Mullin of Smith Mullin in Montclair.

Judiciary spokeswoman MaryAnn Spoto had no comment on the suit. A call to Russo’s chambers was not returned. And a lawyer representing Russo in an unrelated ethics case, Keyport solo David Corrigan, also did not return a call seeking comment.

Desir’s suit accuses Russo of regularly invading her space by placing himself in unusually close proximity to her, and ignoring her requests to stop such behavior. Desir also describes an incident where Russo called her into his office, where he was sitting with his legs spread wide open. She stood about five feet from where he was sitting, but he repeatedly asked her to come closer, the suit claims. When she declined, he became irate and told her to “get out of here,” the complaint states.

Neil Mullin of Smith of Smith Mullin. Courtesy photo

Desir also said she sent an email to Marlene Lynch Ford, the Ocean County assignment judge, two weeks after she started working for Russo, in which she expressed satisfaction with her assignment and complimented Russo’s mentoring of her. But Desir says she only sent the email because Russo ordered her to send it.

Russo repeatedly told her about his political connections and ability to ruin careers, making her reluctant to report his misconduct, Desir’s suit alleges. Russo, a former mayor of Toms River and the son of former Senate President John Russo Sr., told Desir he was responsible for forcing former Gov. James McGreevey to resign, and that he damaged the teaching career of his ex-wife, Karen Russo. Russo’s statements had the effect of exerting control over Desir, who believed he was capable of ruining her career and reputation, the suit states.

Desir, who is black and of Haitian descent, said Russo asked her how she felt being “colonized” when he learned about her ethnicity, and also asked if her parents were still married and if all the children in her family had the same father, the suit claims.

One day in April 2017, Russo summoned Desir into his courtroom, asking her to come closer, but she refused, according to the complaint. Holding a probation file for which Desir was not responsible, he asked her if she had “screened” the file, to which she said she hadn’t. Russo, irate, threw the file at her aggressively, the suit claims. The following day, Desir told Ford she could not continue to work with Russo. Desir was then reassigned to Ford’s chambers, where she stayed until she completed her clerkship in August 2017.

Russo was confirmed in December 2015. In April 2017, he filed a federal lawsuit against the judiciary, Ford and Ocean County Presiding Family Division Judge Madelin Einbinder, claiming he was subject to a hostile work environment because of the amount of time he spent caring for his disabled teenage son.

And in March 2018, the Advisory Committee on Judicial Conduct issued a complaint against Russo in connection with four incidents. In one of the incidents, a woman was seeking a restraining order in Russo’s court against a man who, she alleged, abandoned her along a roadway, threatened to burn her house down and sexually assaulted her. The complaint says Russo, from the bench, asked the woman if she tried to “close your legs,” “run away,” “block your body parts” or call police.

In other incidents in the ethics complaint, Russo is accused of calling a family division manager in Burlington County for help reschedule his own case, failing to recuse from a family court matter assigned to him that involved a man with whom he attended high school, and calling a woman involved in a paternity dispute to warn her that she could be sanctioned if she did not heed a court order to submit to a paternity test.

Russo was placed on administrative leave for nearly 20 months after the ethics complaint was filed. In December 2018, he returned to the bench, assigned to the Civil Division in Burlington County. The ethics case is still pending, and Russo’s civil suit was stayed, pending the outcome of the disciplinary proceedings.

Plaintiffs lawyer Mullin said his client “held judges in high esteem. It was a shock to her system to have a man who she so respected behave in such a crude and crass manner.”

Charles Toutant

Charles Toutant is a litigation writer for the New Jersey Law Journal.

The district court held that an employer could be held liable for its failure to investigate and remediate its employee’s complaint of harassment by a non-employee, and it imposed a standard similar to that which exists under New Jersey law.

The ever-changing landscape of cannabis law at the state level requires employers to be cognizant of their policies and practices to ensure up-to-date compliance.

Featured Firms

Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone

2 Oliver St #608

Boston,
MA02109

857-444-6468

www.marksalomone.com

Gary Martin Hays & Associates
P.C.

235 Peachtree St NE #400

Atlanta,
GA30303

800-898-4297

www.garymartinhays.com

Smith & Hassler

225 N Loop W #525

Houston,
TX77008

(877) 777-1529

www.smithandhassler.com

Presented by BigVoodoo

More from ALM

Premium Subscription

With this subscription you will receive unlimited access to high quality, online, on-demand premium content from well-respected faculty in the legal industry. This is perfect for attorneys licensed in multiple jurisdictions or for attorneys that have fulfilled their CLE requirement but need to access resourceful information for their practice areas.

Team Accounts

Our Team Account subscription service is for legal teams of four or more attorneys. Each attorney is granted unlimited access to high quality, on-demand premium content from well-respected faculty in the legal industry along with administrative access to easily manage CLE for the entire team.

Bundle Subscriptions

Gain access to some of the most knowledgeable and experienced attorneys with our 2 bundle options! Our Compliance bundles are curated by CLE Counselors and include current legal topics and challenges within the industry. Our second option allows you to build your bundle and strategically select the content that pertains to your needs. Both options are priced the same.

From Data to Decisions

Exclusive Depth and Reach.

Legal Compass includes access to our exclusive industry reports, combining the unmatched expertise of our analyst team with ALM’s deep bench of proprietary information to provide insights that can’t be found anywhere else.

Big Pictures and Fine Details

Legal Compass delivers you the full scope of information, from the rankings of the Am Law 200 and NLJ 500 to intricate details and comparisons of firms’ financials, staffing, clients, news and events.

Savvy law leaders should join this webcast to explore how inefficient and antiquated business operations are hindering success, areas to consolidate and streamline operations, and how emerging technologies can help achieve these operational efficiencies.

GREENBAUM ROWE SMITH & DAVIS LLP

BLICK LAW

ALM Legal Publication Newsletters

Sign Up Today and Never Miss Another Story.

As part of your digital membership, you can sign up for an unlimited number of a wide range of complimentary newsletters.
Visit your My Account page to make your selections. Get the timely legal news and critical analysis you cannot afford to miss.
Tailored just for you. In your inbox. Every day.